The present disclosure relates generally to systems and methods for real-time validation of electronic signatures over communication links, e.g., synchronous or asynchronous communication links.
Today, many commercial transportation industries are continuously looking for ways to increase operating efficiencies. One result is that traditional paper intensive processes are candidates for partial or complete replacement by software solutions. Accordingly, many commercial transportation industries are implementing information technology solutions to communicate information and data between mobile platforms and remote ground based stations to improve operational efficiency. These types of communication systems often involve transmission of data and information that requires verification that the communications received are from a trusted source. Thus, the transmission of the data and information, i.e., records, must be electronically signed by the sender, i.e., the author of the data and information transmitted. However, communication links between a mobile platform, e.g., aircraft, train, bus, ship, PDA, laptop computer etc., and a remote ground based communication center or station are often established and maintained on a temporally limited and sporadic basis. That is, the mobile platforms are not typically in constant communication, or constantly connected, with the remote communications stations. Accordingly, such communication links and the transmissions of data over the links are typically asynchronous. Specifically, bi-directional communication between a mobile platform and a remote communication station may have significant delays, e.g., minutes, hours, or more, between one entity sending a message, e.g. data packages, and the receiving entity receiving the message.
Furthermore, such commercial transportation industries must often satisfy regulatory requirements with regard to signing information transmitted by personnel onboard the mobile platforms and at the remote communication stations. To satisfy such regulatory requirements, personal digital certificates are commonly issued for each user. However, the temporal delays inherent in transmissions using the typical asynchronous communications that are common between the mobile platform and remote communication station are not conducive to using personal digital certificates to verify the trustworthiness of such communications. Furthermore, use of digital certificates would require issuing, constant updating and the storing of digital certificate credentials, at both the mobile platform and remote communication station, for all personnel who are authorized to sign such communications. Such requirements are onerous and can cause delays in timely operation of the mobile platform.
However, the desire, need or regulator requirement can arise stipulating that signatures for certain functions be validated in real-time with respect to the actual electronic signing of data, information or function. That is, it can be desired, needed or required that electronic signatures be approximately instantaneously validated, i.e., in a non-temporally delayed fashion, upon the completion of electronically signing the data, information or function. This introduces an operational issue for the commercial transportation industries as it requires that the respective business enterprise keep an up-to-date database of signatures, and potentially digital certificates, for each person authorized to electronically sign such data, information or functions. The rate-of-change in user information, e.g., personnel turnover and changing passwords, and the asynchronously connected nature of the communication links are factors that complicate this operating requirement.